The Biden administration is preparing to restrict cloud services, according to unconfirmed media reports. The leaks come just a day after Beijing decided on Monday to impose restrictions on two key raw materials for chip production. It was thought this was in response to Dutch government rules published on Friday regarding machinery needed to make the chips.
At the same time, US officials told the Wall Street Journal that the measures to be introduced in the field of cloud services will only close the loophole left open by the ban on advanced chips. After all
Customers of Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure can still access blocked semiconductors, or rather, the computing capabilities they unlock.
Tuesday’s broadcast of the cloud service restrictions comes just two days before US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen visits China on Thursday, which is trying to thaw frozen relations between the two superpowers, after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the Asian country last month – several times. months later.
According to the plans, the US Department of Commerce will announce the latest restrictions in the coming weeks, while reviewing the chip ban introduced in October. By banning the export of more advanced semiconductors, the United States is trying to gain an advantage over China in the field of artificial intelligence. Thus, the restrictions may also apply to these Chinese companies, especially if they have a primarily government and military background.
